German swimming pool bans all migrants after girls ‘sexually assaulted by Syrian boys’

A GERMAN leisure centre has banned all migrants after two teenage girls were allegedly groped in a public swimming pool, amid ongoing outrage over the mass sex attacks in Cologne.

The shocking incident at a leisure center in Munich was said to have involved three Syrian boys who allegedly touched a 17-year-old girl underneath her swimming costume.

They were then alleged to have groped the girl’s 14-year-old sister after she came to her sibling’s defence.

The girls managed the flee the pool and call for the lifeguard, who then contacted police.

Three Syrian boys, all under 15, have since been arrested in connection to the incident.

Outraged by the alleged attack and growing concerns, a swimming pool in Bornheim, North Rhine-Westphalia, has since retaliated by barred all migrants from its facilities.

It comes after an 18-year-old refugee was alleged to have grabbed and kissed a 54-year-old in the area.

The woman was only rescued after a couple heard her screams for help, with the teenager arrested a short while later.

The ban at the swimming pool was called for during an emergency meeting of locals, according to Bornheim social affairs councillor and deputy mayor Markus Schnapka.

He said: “At the public meeting, I made it quite clear that it was an extremely difficult decision and it’s clear that many innocent refugees are also affected by this.”

Mr Schnapka added none of the local incidents had resulted in criminal complaints and said “we are mainly talking about verbal attacks”.

The three Syrian boys arrested in Munich were not remanded in custody and will be prosecuted under juvenile law.

Two other people, thought to be friends with one of the alleged offenders, were also arrested for their part in the incident.

The latest concerns over migrants in Germany come as Cologne residents were arming themselves with air guns and pepper spray after the New Year’s Eve sex attacks.

The scene outside Cologne cathedral on the night of the attacks.

Gun shop owners have received 73 applications already this year for air pistols, compared to just 100 for the whole of 2014, local police have said.

Demand for pepper spray is also reportedly high this month in the wake of mass sex attacks as local residents seek to defend themselves.

More than 500 women reported being sexually assaulted, raped and robbed after more than 1,000 migrants went on the rampage in the city centre on New Year’s Eve.

A spokesman for Cologne prosecutors said they have so far received 652 criminal complaints from that night.

At least 331 complaints alleged sexual assaults, including two cases of rape.

In total, 739 victims have come forward – mostly women – of whom 430 alleged they had been sexually assaulted in some way.

Authorities also said they are offering a reward of €10,000 (£7,500) for information leading to the arrest or identification of those who committed the atrocities.

Investigators have said the majority of the perpetrators were of North African and Arabic origin and comes amid growing unease in Germany towards Angela Merkel’s controversial open door immigration policy.

German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung has claimed the majority of the attackers were part of a huge gang of Moroccan criminals who have been orchestrating robberies, muggings and sex assaults on the streets of Cologne for the last six months.